Parent's Guide to Hearing

"A Parent’s Guide to Children’s Hearing Loss” will help parents learn about their child’s hearing loss. It provides important information for parents to learn the process of receiving medical and therapeutic intervention for their child from birth through school age. Parents will learn about audiological tests, medical diagnosis and treatment options, early intervention, including choosing communication options, and education services required to help your child reach their full potential in hearing and speech and language development. A flowchart of the Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EH DI) is in each section to help parents follow the step-by-step process of getting services for their child. Community service providers/resources and a directory of organizations are also provided. Additionally, personal comments from parents of children with hearing loss are featured throughout the Parent’s Guide.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recognizes hearing loss as the most common birth defect, affecting every 3 in 1,000 live births. In 2004, the state of Ohio adopted into law the Universal Newborn Hearing Screening (UNHS ) to assure that all newborn babies have a hearing test before being discharged from the hospital. The Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EH DI) states that a baby will receive screening before 1 month of age, detection before 3 months of age, and intervention by 6 months of age.

This section also explains the importance of the “Medical Home” model. The “Medical Home” model is used to coordinate the child’s medical care, which is a shared responsibility between the child’s primary care doctor and parents.

All babies have their hearing screened at birth. The test results may indicate Pass or Non-pass/Refer. Pass means no more testing is required at this time unless your child/ family have additional risk factors. Nonpass/ Refer means that your baby needs further testing by an audiologist.

When a follow-up hearing evaluation has been completed by an audiologist and confirms your child has a hearing loss, results are sent to the Ohio Department of Health (ODH). ODH works with Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to keep records so that your child receives early intervention services. The specific roles of each professional; audiologist, the child’s primary care doctor, ENT (Ear, Nose, & Throat) doctor, and ODH- Help Me Grow (HMG) and Regional Infant Hearing Program (RIHP) are discussed.

My Child Has a Hearing Loss - "Our Lives Have Been Turned Upside-Down"
Parents often feel guilty and blame themselves for causing their child’s hearing loss. This and other common reactions are discussed in this section. Parents will learn the importance of a support system, and how their support team will assist them in taking care of themselves, their child and their family. Researching and understanding their child’s diagnosis will help parents make a plan of action from an informed decision making process to advocate for the needs of their child and family.

This section explains the federal laws: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA ), Federal Funds under Part C and Part B, Individualized Education Plan (IE P) process, and the American Disabilities Act (ADA) for children with disabilities. These laws are reviewed to help parents learn and understand how to get education services for their child.